Page 63 of Sebastian's Baby

I cringe as I remember what I have to do next weekend and groan, “Lucky you, I still have a week of stress to go before I face the gallows.”

11

LEVEL 11.6 – The Perfect Match

It’safter four in the afternoon by the time we reach the small town three hours away from Chicago, and I say, “Welcome to Galena, princess.”

“Do you come into the town often?” Lita asks.

“Not really. I don’t want to draw attention to myself here. It was pretty bad when Harrison and Heather got married. Limo after limo full of famous guests driving through the town,” I laugh as I remember it.

We drive past the town and eventually make our way to the private road that leads to my estate.

We pull up to the set of iron gates on which I had the name of the estate written in massive, gold script:

Maison De L'amour Et De La Musique

Lita looks thoughtful, then asks, “House of Love and Music?”

“Exactly.” I grin at her as the large gates swing open, and I edge the car through them.

“That’s what you named your estate?” Lita asks, sounding incredulous.

I raise my eyebrows and say, “Yes, why?”

“We all thought it would be called ‘Sebastian’s Love Shack’ or something.” She pokes her tongue out at me.

I throw my head back and laugh loudly, because clearly, this was a missed opportunity. “Brilliant. I might rename it. Especially now you’re here.”

We’re driving down the tree-lined driveway, past open fields of green grass. Eventually, we drive up to the main house, and Lita’s mouth drops open when she sees it.

I get a flush of pride at her reaction. I love this place, and I’ve never brought anyone here other than my friends and family. So this really feels like solidifying Lita's new position in my life as a part of my family.

I pull into the garage, and as we get out of the car, Lita looks around, and she finally has that star-struck look on her face when she sees the cars in the garage.

Harrison’s Model S is next to her, Gabriel’s Vanquish is just over from my GT-R Skyline, and further on from it is Hayden’s Sián next to my Maybach. The rest of my cars fill the remainder of the garage.

“Do I want to know how many cars you own, Sebastian?” she asks.

“Not all of these are mine.” I laugh because I know she has recognized the guys’ cars. “But do you want to know?”

Lita shakes her head and rolls her eyes. “Probably not.”

I laugh again as we head inside, and I carry both of our overnight bags up the massive, sweeping staircase that comes off the entrance hall and leads to the second floor. When we get upstairs, I lead her down the hallway, past the guest rooms, and into my master suite.

“This place is ridiculous,” she tells me as we walk inside.

Once again, she seems to have chosen the words that will hurt me the most because I love my estate. This place means a lot to me, and it’s become my safe haven.

“Ouch, princess.”

“No, I mean, it’s like a hotel. It’s fancy as fuck,” she clarifies.

I walk over to her and put my arms around her waist, holding her to me as I say, “I grew up completely and utterly middle class, princess. We got money whenCards Have Been Dealthit it big time. I didn’t spend much at first. Even Gabriel went out and bought his Aston. We went on tour, and I was still living in the same shitty apartment I’d been living in for years. By the time the tour was over, I was burnt out. Stuff happened.”

I realize that since Lita is well and truly going to be a part of our lives going forward, she’s probably going to hear about this anyway.

“Fuck, I might as well tell you—Ariana was on tour with us, and she left the day after the Grammys. Aside from the drugging, it’s the worst thing we’ve all been through.”

---